Rarely does a book come along that so succinctly explains the decline of modern culture, articulates a defense of the Church's teachings, and offers a hope-filled path for building a civilization grounded in Catholic truth. In Rebuilding Catholic Culture, Dr. Ryan Toppingdoes all three, pulling back the curtain on the false philosophies of the secularists and showing that in the West today the most formidable threat to freedom is not failing economies or Islam, but secularism. Our best defense, he claims, is a vibrant Catholic culture, and our best hope for creating it lies in the principles found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. You will discover sensible ways to begin restoring Catholic culture -- right now -- in your own life and family, and in our larger communities as well: in the theater, the classroom, in our hospitals, and even in the public square. Ryan joins us.

5:00 – Innocence: A Novel

He lives in solitude beneath the city, an exile from society, which will destroy him if he is ever seen. She dwells in seclusion, a fugitive from enemies who will do her harm if she is ever found. But the bond between them runs deeper than the tragedies that have scarred their lives. Something more than chance—and nothing less than destiny—has brought them together in a world whose hour of reckoning is fast approaching. It’s the latest novel from the Catholic bestselling author Dean Koontz who blends mystery, suspense, and acute insight into the human soul in a masterfully told tale that will resonate with readers forever. He joins us.

5:40 – Kresta Comments: New Interview with Pope Francis Published by La Stampa

By Kathy SchifferPope Paul VI, author of the 1968 encyclical Humanae Vitae (Of Human Life), will likely be beatified in the next few months, according to a report by Italian journalist Andrea Tornielli.

Writing in the Italian newspaper La Stampa,Tornielli reports that the Medical Commission of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints has declared that the former pope’s healing of an unborn child is “unexplainable.” Patrizio Polisca, Benedict XVI and Francis’ personal doctor, is chair of the Medical Commission.

The alleged miracle will now be studied by theologians and cardinals, before the case is forwarded to the Holy Father for approval.

The case involved a pregnant woman in California in the early ‘90s. Doctors advised the mother to abort, after they found an abnormality in the developing fetus which normally results in brain damage. The woman refused and continued the pregnancy, praying for the intercession of Pope Paul VI.

When the child was born, the medical team was surprised to find no evidence of defects. However, only after the child reached puberty could doctors assert with absolute confidence that he had made a full recovery. Finally last year, Father Antonio Marrazzo, C.Ss.R., postulator for the cause of canonization for Paul VI, said with confidence that “a truly extraordinary and supernatural event had occurred, thanks to the intercession of Paul VI.”

Several years ago, Father Marrazzo had received a list of a number of possible miracles; and from the list, he felt that the strongest case could be made for healing of the unborn child who appeared to be healed in utero.

And last year—on December 20, 2012—Pope Benedict approved the declaration of Pope Paul as a person of “heroic virtue”, granting him the title of “Venerable”.

The debate over the late Pope’s cause has intensified over the past year, with doctors exchanging medical opinions until yesterday’s final verdict. Speaking at a conference on Paul VI’s visit to the Holy Land last November, the Archbishop of Milan, Cardinal Angelo Scola, said the former Pope’s beatification “should be relatively imminent.”

Talking about the "things that matter most" on December 134:00 – Good News, Bad News: Evangelization, Conversion and the Crisis of FaithSix years ago our friends Fr. John McCloskey and Russell Shaw wrote Good News, Bad News: Evangelization, Conversion and the Crisis of Faith. Based on the great success and influence that Father McCloskey has had in helping instruct many converts to Catholicism, especially numerous high profile DC figures, this book is a powerful combination of the methods, theology, and theories that McCloskey uses in his evangelization efforts. In addition to his compelling insights on how to teach or share the faith in a winning, inspiring way, this work includes the contributions of several dozen converts of Fr. McCloskey who give their own moving testimonies of why they converted to Catholicism, and how that life-changing journey happened for each of them. We revisit this inspirational book today with Fr. McCloskey.5:00 – Innocence: A NovelHe lives in solitude beneath the city, an exile from society, which will destroy him if he is ever seen. She dwells in seclusion, a fugitive from enemies who will do her harm if she is ever found. But the bond between them runs deeper than the tragedies that have scarred their lives. Something more than chance—and nothing less than destiny—has brought them together in a world whose hour of reckoning is fast approaching. It’s the latest novel from the Catholic bestselling author Dean Koontz who blends mystery, suspense, and acute insight into the human soul in a masterfully told tale that will resonate with readers forever. He joins us.5:20 – The Catholic “Hobbit”Before you visit theatres for the second installment of the film based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s beloved “The Hobbit,” brush up on your elvish and pack your “Baggins,” because Tolkien Scholar Joseph Pearce is here to take you on an extensive tour of the Catholic themes found in “the Hobbit”and in the life of JRR Tolkien

Religious freedom is under siege. Around the world, from Cairo and Damascus to Tehran and Beijing, Christianity finds itself increasingly persecuted.

Beginning today the Religious Freedom Project at Georgetown University, together with Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion, is hosting a two-day conference in Rome to highlight Christianity’s contributions to the understanding and practice of freedom for all people. At the conference, new findings will be presented from a two-year study by dozens of scholars concerning Christianity’s contributions to freedom.

The Sorbonne’s Rémi Brague, winner of the 2012 Ratzinger Prize, and His Beatitude Mar Louis Raphaël I Sako of Baghdad, patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldean Catholic Church, will deliver keynote addresses. Other speakers will include Baylor University President Ken Starr, former solicitor general of the United States, and Marcello Pera, former president of the Italian Senate.

CLICK HERE to watch the LIVE WEBCAST from Rome on Friday, December 13 and Saturday, December 14 from 3:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. EST at the Aleteia website.

Parenting is hard . . . but it's not impossible. As a parent, you know that raising children presents greater questions every day. Aristotle has the answers . . . you just have to know how to find them. Conor Gallaghermasterfully weaves Aristotle's ancient philosophy, scientific studies, pop culture, and parenting tales together making If Aristotle's Kid Had an iPod a funny, rich, and informative read, and an indispensable guide for any parent who wants to pass on the secrets of a happy life to their kid. He joins us today

5:00 – Education in Virtue

The Disciple of Christ- Education in Virtue is a Christian curriculum structured on the teachings of St. Thomas Aquinas regarding the virtues and gifts of the Holy Spirit. It aims to provide a consistent structure and systematic instruction for youth to learn about the virtues so that they can form the habits and dispositions necessary to live as disciples of Jesus Christ. This curriculum emphasizes Christian discipleship as indispensable toward human flourishing and the quest for joy. It has been developed in response to the call for a New Evangelization, firmly conveying the reality that happiness is found in a life of holiness. The genesis of the project, Sr. John Dominic of the Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, is here to discuss it

A video of lesbian violence against Christians goes viral, despite a media blackout

Yelling, topless women spray-painting men’s crotches. Protestors spitting in faces. Lesbians performing lewd acts and shoving their bare breasts on praying men. A mob of thousands of angry women dancing around a burning effigy of the pope. No, it’s not newsreel footage from Nazi Germany. It’s present day Argentina. Haven’t heard about it? That’s because the mainstream media has been dead silent on an event that should have been front page news across the globe. It was caught on tape, however, and watchers of the shocking, now viral video are mostly calling it “satanic” and noting it certainly would have been big news if Christians had assaulted pro-choicers and lesbians.

An escalating annual event

An escalating annual event Canada’s pro-life LifeSiteNews broke the story last week. It took place in San Juan, a city of 500,000 in western Argentina, on Sunday, November 24th. Seventeen thousand women attended the 28th annual National Meeting of Women, a feminist conference to discuss violence, gender issues and abortion rights. Then, as has become a custom since at least 2008 following the conference, many participants took to the streets to rampage and attack the local churches.

Only 500 feminists tried to storm a cathedral in Podomos, Argentina following last year’s National Women’s Conference. At 7,000 this year, the violence is growing. Knowing what was coming, some 1,500 faithful turned out to defend San Juan’s cathedral from invasion and damage. Men linked arms in a ring outside, while another 700 people prayed inside. A priest led exorcism prayers before the rioting protestors turned up. The video shows topless women gyrating in lesbian sex acts, drawing Nazi symbols on the men’s faces, molesting them, spitting and chanting: “To the Roman Catholic Apostolic Church, who wants to get between our sheets, we say that we want to be whores, transvestites and lesbians. Legal abortion in every hospital.” Throughout the entire clip, the men stand like a stone wall and quietly pray the rosary. Not one demonstrator got inside.

The ‘new evangelism’ at work

The video, posted by pro-life websites, has now been viewed at least 400,000 times and has elicited thousands of comments, many of them noting the “satanic” behavior of the abortion activists, and commending the men for their imperturbable restraint.

In a remarkable interview with LifeSiteNews, one of the men who defended San Juan’s cathedral, Oscar Campillay, told how during the two-hour ordeal he felt there “was something inhuman there, almost diabolic, that made one shudder.” But, he said, he decided to look in the eyes of a girl whose face was covered while she was assaulting him and to pray for her. “There was an instant in which our eyes met and we each held our gaze firmly,” he said. “Suddenly she became calm and quiet; slowly she uncovered her face and looked at me, and withdrew in silence away from the crowd.”

(This is Part II of the summary of my response to the Preparatory Document for the Extraordinary Synod. For Part I, go here) In part 1 of this series, I looked at the challenge of articulating the uniquely Catholic vision of family life that is spelled out in documents like Gaudium et Spes, Familiaris Consortio, [Read More...]

According to George Weigel, the first nine months of the pontificate of Pope Francis have often resembled a gigantic Rorschach test in which various commentators inside and outside the Catholic Church have “seen” their dreams and fears realized. Alas, what has been “seen” has often had little to do with the record of Jorge Mario Bergoglio as priest and bishop or with his most consequential decisions as Pope. Those projections reached fever pitch with the publication on Tuesday of Francis’ first apostolic exhortation, “Evangelii Gaudium” (The Joy of the Gospel), which was celebrated, or lamented, as if it were an Occupy Whatever position paper for a G-8 summit. Instead, the papal document should be read and appreciated for what it manifestly is: a clarion call for a decisive shift in the Catholic Church’s self-understanding, in full continuity with the teaching of the Second Vatican Council, Paul VI, John Paul II and Benedict XVI. George joins us to make his case.

4:20 – Former Ambassadors: Obama’s call to close Vatican embassy is ‘slap in the face’ to Roman Catholics

Plans to move the U.S. embassy to the Vatican onto the grounds of the larger American embassy to Italy, though in a separate building and with a distinct entrance, are drawing fire from five former American envoys despite the tacit consent of the Vatican itself. Justified primarily on the grounds of enhanced security, the move is drawing fire from former Vatican Ambassadors James Nicholson, Francis Rooney, Mary Ann Glendon, Raymond Flynn, and Thomas Melady. Ambassador Flynn is here to explain his objections.

4:30 – U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Landmark Hobby Lobby Case

The U.S. Supreme Court last week agreed to take up two challenges to the HHS Mandate, one of which is Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., a landmark case addressing the Constitutionally guaranteed rights of business owners to operate their family companies without violating their deeply held religious convictions. We talk to Lori Windham, an attorney with the Beckett Fund which filed this case.

4:40 – The Philosophy of “The Hunger Games”

With the amazing success of the film The Hunger Games: The Girl on Fire over the last week, we talk about the Philosophy of the books – and now the movies. Katniss Everdeen is "the girl who was on fire," but she is also the girl who made us think, dream, question authority, and rebel. The post-apocalyptic world of Panem's twelve districts is a divided society on the brink of war and struggling to survive, while the Capitol lives in the lap of luxury and pure contentment. At every turn in the Hunger Games trilogy, Katniss, Peeta, Gale, and their many allies wrestle with harrowing choices and ethical dilemmas that push them to the brink. Co-editor of The Hunger Games and Philosophy, George Dunn, joins us.

Christmas can often be a difficult for singles. It can feel very lonely when it feels like everyone around you is dating or married. How do you deal with that? At Christmas Eve dinner, there is always that Aunt who asks: "when are you going to get married already?" How can you stay joyful at Christmas when you are single? Mary Beth Bonacci is here to answer these questions and more.

Recently, I was asked by my bishop to provide a response to the survey in preparation for the 2014 Extraordinary Synod on the Family. Many of the questions in that document have to do with the faithful’s awareness of the practical significance of the Church’s unique vision of marriage and family life as articulated in [Read More...]